Friday, June 06, 2014

Challenge of the Super Friends, Episode 7

Episode 7: "The Giants of Doom"

It's been far, far too long since we recapped an episode of Challenge of the Superfriends, so let's jump back into the Hall of Justice's pool hip-deep with the seventh episode, featuring a plot by the Legion of Doom so foolproof it's bound to work, and defeat the Super Friends once and for all!

Bizarro comes up with a plan (yes, that master tactician, Bizarro) to create a ray that will turn the Legion of Doom into giants. The ray requires the combination of four elements, so the bad guys split up to grab each necessary piece. The first such strike is aimed at the moon, with Sinestro and Bizarro literally cutting it in half (despite their being astronauts on it), which of course gets the attention of the Super Friends! Superman, Batman, and Robin do damage control with Sinestro and Bizarro grab the rare element, buried deep inside the moon.

Superman--after putting the moon back together--capture the bad guys, and bring them back to the Hall of Justice. Looks like the Legion's plan isn't going to work...or is it?

Captain Cold and The Toyman are next, heading to Athens, and Green Lantern and Aquaman meet them there:

The same thing occurs: Cold and Toyman get the element, but are then captured and brought back to the HOJ. But for some reason they don't seem that broken up about it.

Next, Luthor and Brainiac try a direct assault on the Hall of Justice, attacking our heroes with a De-Dignifying Ray:

While the other heroes are outside, Sinestro zaps Green Lantern, allowing them to get free. We then learn that this was the plan all along, to use the JLA Computer to fuse the elements into the ray! They use the ray on themselves, and soon our heroes are looking at Sinestro, The Toyman, Captain Cold, and Bizarro towering over the Hall of Justice!

The Super Friends try and stop them, but they are no match for these Giants of Doom (hey, that's the episode title!). Captain Cold blasts them, freezing them into immobility, and placing them in a glass cylinder. Toyman uses a giant slingshot to hurtle the Super Friends into space, while they use the JLA Computer for more of their nefarious ends.

The Super Friends land on Saturn(!), but thanks to Batman's utility belt, their ice prison is melted and they are free. After battling some nasty gas demons, they make their way off the planet and head back to Earth. Unfortunately, the whole planet is surrounded by a JLA force field, activated by the Legion down on Earth. Batman life hacks the JLA Satellite, and luckily the controls are fairly simple to use:

After consulting the JLA Computer, the Super Friends learn they, too, can use the ray to increase their size. Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, and Flash--all now super-sized--battle the Legion of Doom, and defeat them:

But suddenly the four villains are teleported away, seemingly by the Legion of Doom HQ flying through the sky. Superman grabs it, only to find it empty--a dummy! The Legion of Doom has gotten away once again!

The End...for now!

All things considered, this is one the Legion's better plans, though of course not just crushing the Super Friends with their giant selves was a fatal flaw. I love how jam-packed these shows are: as if this plot--which moves at a breakneck pace--wasn't enough, but while the Super Friends are on Saturn, they get attacked by some gas demons! They have nothing to with the plot, it's just a fun little aside thrown in.

Unlike previous episodes, Aquaman gets some stuff to do here; he goes with Green Lantern to take on Toyman and Captain Cold. Interesting that it wasn't GL and Flash, considering; I guess the Super Friends like a, er, challenge once in a while.